Paradise Dance Queen
by pharaohwriter
Summary: Emily is a dancer from Hawaii moving to Rosewood, PA in hopes of being developing her technique with Alexei Sokolov to get into a ballet company. Along comes teenage struggles, love, family and determination to achieve her goals. And did I forget to mention a love triangle?
1. New Neighbor

_"All the Autumn leaves are falling, I feel like you're the only reason for it,"_ I sing along to the radio as I'm driving behind my mom to our new home. It looks like your average small town with expensive cars. I pull up outside and see that Kai, Lau and Cade without their shirt, pulling boxes out of the U-Haul truck and moving it into the house. I grew up with all of them back in Hawaii and I considered them like my brothers. Kai is two years younger, and on the skinny side of life, with his dyed platinum blonde hair moussed into a faux hawk, he was your average surfer boy. Lau is the same age as Kai but a bit more muscular and had tribal tattoos covering both his arms and tight abs, he started growing his hair since the 6th grade and now it was almost as long as mine. Cade was purely muscle, most people were afraid of him back on the Island, but he was a big teddy bear. His right arm was covered in tribal patterns, as he stood at 6'4" and 250 pounds. His hair was a dark brown and curly at shoulder length, but it was currently in a ponytail as he let his five o'clock shadow grow a little longer. I stepped out my truck and immediately regret wearing these black skinny jeans that the sun seems to love. I see four girls walking down the street opposite from my side and they're stunning. Two are blondes, one with the perfect curls, the other with a spunky aura, and the other two are brunettes, one the shortest of the group with an avant-garde fashion style, whereas the other looks the most studious of the group. I put on my pilot shades to block the sun and I'm brought out of my thoughts.

"Hey Nani," I hear Cade say as he walks up to me and wraps me in a hug. His huge stature makes me seem small and kisses me on the cheek.

"Hey Cade," I wrap my arms around his torso and feel his sweaty back.

"Where's your stuff?" he asks and I nod pointing to my trunk. "Guys come here!" he yells and Kai and Lau run towards us.

"What's up?" Kai asks.

"Get stuff out the trunk," he says and they nod before completing the task. I eventually help setting up stuff inside the house. It turns dark by the time most of the rooms are done leaving the garage and spare bedrooms for the next day. Instead of looking through the boxes for my clothes I decide to sleep without clothes. Light filters through my room and I awake.

"How long are you guys in town for?" I hear my mom ask as I descend the steps.

"Well I have a competition in two weeks, so I'm just staying here for two days then I need to get back to train," Kai says and Lau nods.

"I'll be staying here for a bit longer, maybe a week or two," Cade answers and I know my dad put him up to it. Our parents had been practically arranging our marriage since we were in diapers, that was until I came out. I knew he had feelings for me and never really understood it when I told him I liked girls and only saw him as a brother. He has always been my protector and we were around each other practically everyday, that I don't know how this new dynamic will change our relationship.

"Hey sweetie," my mom greets.

"Hey mom, guys," I say to them and Cade pulls out a chair next to him.

"We were going into town for breakfast, want to come?" he asks and I nod.

"Lets all take a shower and wear shirts," I joke knowing that their idea of showers is an early morning surf session and the weather was so warm that there was never a need for shirts.

"Shower yes, shirts…hmmm?" Cade jokes.

"They probably won't let you into a restaurant without one," I reason and he nods reluctantly. I go back upstairs to pick out clothes and shower. I settle on my favorite wash blue, high waist shorts, and a crop top and black closed toe heels that zip above my ankles. I put pieces of my hair into a small bun on top of my head and let the rest fall around my shoulders, as the tips are dyed blonde. Once I'm done I walk downstairs to see Cade dressed in a blue tank top, but he's so muscular that his chest still show on the sides a bit. His hair is pulled into a messy bun, beige shorts that cling to him semi-tightly and his signature flip-flops. Kai sported black skinny jeans, white shirt with Aztec symbols and a hat to match. Lau opted out of the shirt deal and stuck with his jean jumpsuit and sported with his classic timberlands. He loved those so much he'd wear them in 100° weather. But I stare at him intently.

"What?" he asks innocently.

"I thought I specifically said shirts," I argued.

"No worries," he says and turns to show me a shirt hanging out of his back pocket.

"Fine," I say through clenched teeth. "Let's go," I order and we all walk out towards my truck. She was a beauty that I acquired, Mercedes G550 all black interior and exterior with blacked out windows. Cade slides into the passenger seat next to me and we all buckle in before I travel towards the center of town. I find it after driving around for thirty minutes in what seemed like circles. I park in the first open spot I see and we climb out the doors. I see people staring at us and I put on my glasses so I can roll my eyes in peace. I hate being the new girl. We find a coffee shop called the Brew and we walk inside. I see the girls from yesterday sitting at a table but ignore their stares and turn my direction to the menu.

"Hi, welcome to the Brew, how can I help you?" the girl asks.

"Yes, I'll have a Carmel Macchiato, a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino, Strawberry Smoothie, and a Fresh Greens Smoothie," I say and she nods before giving order to another worker and we go to grab a table, but the only available one is next to the girls who I see are intently looking at me and probably sizing me up. Kai and Lau rush to take a seat across from us so they can stare at the girls as Cade pulls out my chair for me.

"Thanks," I say and he nods before taking a seat and I pull out my phone to check out friends from back home.

"Oh my God, did you see that?" Kai asks Lau as he shows them a phone.

"Claire just started to surf," he says to us and shows us the video his mom sent to him. Claire is his baby sister who's only 5 years old and a natural on water.

"Emily!" I hear the barista yell and I go to get up but Cade puts his hand on my shoulder to let me know he'll get it. He pays the barista and tips her well.

"Everything is so cheap here," he says excitedly when he comes back to the table.

"I'm starting to think Hawaii is the only place that charges $10 for a coffee," I respond.

"So Em, have you found any new dance studios you want to try out?" Lau asks.

"Yeah, there's a few in Philly and New York, but I'm going over to California in a month or two for a competition, so I want to practice ahead of time," I reason and they nod.

"I'll be there," Cade says and I look in shock.

"How? You can't keep paying to travel back and forth," I say.

"Yeah, well that's for me to worry about, I'm supporting you on your first big break of year since the move," he says leaving no room for discussion. After a few minutes of silence and looking on our phones I see movement out the corner of my eye. It's Cade taking off his shirt and Kai following suit.

"Really?" I ask.

"What its hot, besides that's the longest I've ever stayed in a shirt over the summer," he reasons and I roll my eyes jokingly. "And let me take these off since I can't see you rolling those big brown eyes," he says and we both laugh as Kai and Lau are stuck in another conversation. "There we go, beautiful".

"What do you want to do today?" I ask.

"How about we finish with your room".

"Sounds like a great plan," I say excitedly.

"Kai, you ready for your competition?" I ask and he sucks his teeth.

"What competition?" he says cockily and we all laugh before getting up to walk around the square. I turn around to make eye contact with the blonde that had the most striking blue eyes. She looked as if she'd stepped right out of a magazine. I look around the table to see them all looking at me intently and I was about to say something when Cade wraps his arms around my waist and buries his chin in my head. His rough hands touch the exposed skin from the crop top.

"Ready to go Nani?" he asks and I nod so he places his hand on my back as we walk out.

"When are those two gonna get married?" I hear Kai joke and I turn around to glare at him hard and he gulps back what I'd assume the largest hairball of his life.

"That's one thing I won't miss in Hawaii, the death glare," Lau whispers in his ear while taking off the straps to his jumpsuit. We walk around for about an hour checking out different shops and eating sandwiches at a deli, or more like Cade ate two before I could finish one. We make it back to my house at 1 where I see some movers my mom hired setting up more furniture.

"Hey sweetie, you going to unpack?" she asks and I nod. "Can you take this pie over to the neighbors, I see she has a daughter around your age," and I immediately start shaking my head.

"Of course we will," Cade intervenes and I shoot him a glare, but he ignores it. He takes my mom's famous apple pie in his hand and grabs mine with the other dragging me across the street and soon we're knocking on the door. It opens to reveal the other blonde with clear blue eyes and shorter, but straight hair and black highlights.

"Hi," she answers bubbly but I don't speak until Cade squeezes my hand.

"Hi, my mom wanted me to drop this pie off to you," I say and he clears his throat. "I'm Emily and this is my friend Cade".

"I'm Hanna, would you like to come in, my friends are here," she says nicely.

"Oh no that's..." I say but am cut off.

"We'd love to," Cade speaks for me and I really want to cut him.

"Awesome, I saw you guys earlier at the coffee shop, where's the other two?" she asks leading us into the kitchen where the other girls are sitting a table.

"Back at the house," Cade says.

"So this is Alison, Spencer, Aria, guys this is my new neighbor Emily and her friend Cade," she says.

"Hi," they say.

"Hi," I respond.

"Alright, it's too many girls, I'm going to head back," Cade says but I clench his hand not ready to release it. "Make some friends, and be nice," he whispers in my ear before kissing me on the cheek.

"So the hottie's your boyfriend?" Hanna asks and I scrunch my face.

"No he's more like a brother," I respond quickly.

"Sure," she says coolly.

"So where are you from?" Aria asks.

"Hawaii," I say.

"Oh that must be cool, living in paradise all the time," she says.

"It's okay, everything is more expensive and you don't have access to everything," I respond.

"So what brings you to Rosewood?" Alison asks.

"Needed a change," I say vaguely.

"So what grade are you in?" Spencer asks.

"I'm going into my junior year," I say.

"You play any sports?" she asks.

"I dance, but I used to swim competitively," I respond.

"What kind of dance do you do?" Hanna asks.

"My concentration is Ballet, but I really love Hip-Hop," I say.

"Nice car you have," Alison says as an open-ended statement. "Your family rich?"

"We do okay," I respond.

"Nani!" Lau yells rushing into the house and loses his speech when he sees the girls. "Whoa".

"Lau, what did I tell you about coming into places uninvited?" I ask sternly and he rolls his eyes.

"I'm Lau," he says his voice deepening slightly and extending to Aria first.

"Aria," she responds before he turns his attention to the rest.

"Hanna".

"Spencer".

"Alison".

"Sorry I tried to stop him," Cade runs in with Kai in tow whose mouth hangs open at the girls.

"Whoa dude," he says and his eyes widen.

"Close your mouth before you catch flies," I say and it breaks him out of his trance and it has everyone else chuckling. That is until we hear the radio transition to the Nick Jonas Chains song.

"Ugh not again," we all groan knowing what's to follow so Cade goes over to turn it off.

"It's for your own protection," he says to the girls and they smile.

"So are you guys into house music?" Lau asks and they nod. "Can you tell me what you think about this, I was messing around with my computer". **(Lean On by Major Lazer & DJ Snake)**

"That's sick dude," Kai says in the middle as we're all bumping our heads to the beat.

"He probably thinks they're going to drop their pants for him," Cade whispers in my ear and I look in his eyes and we both laugh out loud.

"Awe look at the lovebirds," Kai points out like the little kid he is and I set him a cold glare.

"It's time to go," I say ruining the moment.

"But we just got here," he argues.

"And we're leaving," I snap back and he shuts up, but puts a pout on his face.

"Bye guys, it was nice meeting you," I wave at them.

"Hey Emily, do you guys want to come to this end of the year party that's later on tonight?" Hanna asks.

"Sure, I'm always down for a party," I say.

"It's at Noel's cabin, you can just follow in your truck. We're leaving around 10," she says and I nod.

"See you then," I say and we all leave.


	2. Party Time

"You ready to go nani?" I hear Cade as he opens my door.

"Yeah" I say to him as I look over my outfit. I'm wearing my favorite black skinny jeans, a loose see through tank top, and black vans, with a flack and white flannel tied around my waist. I let my hair flow down after I washed it so now it was in loose waves.

"Gonna be doing some dancing tonight?" he asks and I look at him as if we both knew the answer and we laughed as he put his head on my shoulder. "Beautiful," he whispers.

"You look handsome yourself," I say noting his black muscle shirt and black jeans.

"Ready?" he asks and I nod. He holds out his arm for me to take and it feels like we're back on the island, where we'd go to every party together. I walk down the steps to see my mom waiting.

"You look beautiful honey," she says kissing me on the cheek.

"Thanks mom, where are Kai and Lau?" I ask.

"Oh they went across the street to help the girls," she says oblivious to their sneaky ways.

"Of course, let's go get them. We should be home normal time," I say to her and she nods.

"Have fun," she closes the door behind us and I walk across the street with Cade. I knock on the door and Kai answers and I set an immediate glare in his direction.

"I'm going to kill you," I whisper to him and he backs away to allow us in.

"You look great," Hanna says meeting us at the door.

"Thanks, so do you," I tell her giving her a hug. She was wearing a mint blue dress that made her eyes seem even more icy. Aria wore a black lace dress. Spencer stuck with skinny jeans and a nice blouse. Alison had come in with a floral pattern dress that stopped mid thigh, her curls were perfection and styled with nude make up.

"Want a shot?" Hanna asks and I nod. We all gather around the counter as she pours each of us a shot. We all down ours with the exception of Kai and Lau who are making funny faces and sipping it.

"Knock it back hard," Cade shows them and instructs them to take another round.

"Good job boys," he pats them on the back as they cough from downing their second shot. We're walking back to the car when he says, "I'll be designated driver, just enjoy your time with the girls".

"Thanks Cade," I squeeze his hand. We follow them for thirty minutes leading to the woods until we see over a hundred kids out on the lawn and filling the huge cabin house. Music blaring, red cups scattered everywhere is my kind of party.

"You should go to the DJ and take over," I hear Aria say to Lau.

"Just point me in the direction," he says to Aria and they walk off. I see Kai hanging around us.

"Hey Hanna you dance?" I ask her.

"Yes I love to dance," she replies happily.

"You know Kai has a few moves," I tell her and she grabs his hand and drags him to the dance floor. I grab Cade's hand and follow the two. "I love this song," I put my hands around his neck as we move to the Becky G- Can't Stop Dancin' song. I eventually turn around and feel his arms wrap around my waist. Lights Down Low, No Hands, Love Song, I knew that Lau had taken over the DJ station as everyone was now on the dance floor and he was playing some of my favorite songs. Eventually a circle had formed around Cade and I, but he then backed away.

"This is for you Em!" Lau says and the familiar beat of Beyonce Upgrade U comes on and my body takes over. He transitions smoothly over to Trap Queen and then to Ayo and Bitch Better Have My Money. Other dancers eventually join me on the floor and the crowd claps at us before dancing themselves.

"Damn girl, when you said you love hip hop, we had no idea. Can't imagine what you ballet skills are like," Hanna gives me a high five and brings me into a hug.

"Thanks Hanna," I say a little sweaty form the dancing.

"You were amazing," Alison whispers in my ear.

"Thanks," I lean back and look into her eyes and I get lost in them.

"Back up! Back up! Back up!" I hear someone say moving the crowd back into a circle. It's a black guy with light brown skin and a little facial hair and a black fitted hat. He was a skinny muscular, he had the physique of a dancer.

"Dance with me," he says and the crowd sends out different screams.

"DJ hit that!" he yells and the song I Luv This plays through the speakers. He begins dancing sexually and I take the hint. Dancing has always come so naturally, all gender aside and it just flows. All the emotions, anger, sadness, happiness all wrapped in the dance moves.

"You were amazing," I say to him after we high five each other.

"So were you," I say to him. "What's your name?"

"Kyle, you?"

"Emily, it's been a while since I found a worthy dance partner," I smiled at him.

"You dance professionally?" he asks and I nod.

"Yeah, ballet it my discipline," I tell him and he shakes his head but lets out a laugh.

"Your body says otherwise, hip hop seems more you," he says.

"Dance is dance to me," I say and Cade comes behind me.

"Is this your boyfriend?" the guys asks.

"Yes," Cade answers before I could even and I frown looking at him before he drags me away outside.

"Why would you do that?" I ask and he crosses his arms. "Answer me!" I yell but he shrugs his shoulders. "Whatever," I say brushing past him back inside. I walk back inside the see majority of the party dancing rather than drinking and I head back to the kitchen where I see an array of bears, liquors, jello shots, and everything in between. I smell someone smoking weed.

"Hey can I have a few hits?" I ask they boys and they nod with their eyes wide. After taking three hard hits I get up to down two shots of tequila, knowing the effects will be disastrous tomorrow. I walk back out onto the dance floor and see both guys and girls eying me. I see a beautiful brunette with long dark hair and blue eyes and cherry lips.

"Want to dance with me?" I ask and she nods excitedly. Hawaiian Reggae begins to play and I bring her into me and I sway her hips into mine. Eventually Lau gets the courage to play his song and the crowd goes crazy. I turn her around facing me and she wraps her arms around me. I take in her scent and she smells like lavender. The effects of the weed and alcohol take over me as I feel her grind harder into me, and I squeeze her waist harder. She bites her lip and it's a move that drives me crazy so I take the plunge and lean forward. Our lips fuse together as our hips move and I lose myself in the music and her soft lips. I hear whistles surrounding us and I look up to see majority of guys looking and Kai nodding his head happily as he dances with Hanna. I see Spencer and Alison across the way and they're both wearing an expression of shock, but there's something else in Alison's eyes that I can't put my finger on. I'm bought out of my observations when I feel her soft hand tugging my hands. She pulls me toward the stairs and I stumble a little but we make it up all the way. Once there she leads me to an empty bedroom and I sit on the bed. She straddles my waist and begins kissing me, but the bursting of a door opening interrupts us. At first I thought it would be Cade, but it wasn't, it was Alison.

"Get out whore," she says icily to the girl.

"What are you doing?" I ask slurring my words.

"Did you even know her name?" she asks coolly and I shake my head. "Figures".

"Why'd you do that?" I ask getting a little angry.

"Because she's a whore," she says again.

"And?" I ask.

"I didn't know you like girls," she changes the subject.

"You never asked," I said lying down on the bed to let the high pass me.

"What's going on with you and Cade?" she asked.

"Nothing he's like my brother," I say.

"I don't dance and hang around my brother like that," she says.

"We're best friends, he has feelings for me, but I'm gay," I say and feel myself drifting off to sleep. Next time I wake up I'm in my bedroom. The light is blinding me and I feel that Cade left the blinds open on purpose. I put on decent clothing before walking downstairs where a wave of nausea forces me to run back upstairs. The smell of breakfast does not agreeing with the events of the previous night. Instead of breakfast I decide to go for a run into town. I put on my black running pants, a sports bra and my running sunglasses.

"Going for a run mom," I say to her as I exit the house. I set off for the familiar path but feel the presence of him behind me so I run faster.

"Listen, I'm sorry for last night nani," he says catching up to me in no time but I ignore him.

"You can't ignore me forever," he says and I put in my headphones and continue on my run hating that he's a natural athlete with impressive stamina. We make it to The Brew where I order a coffee and take a seat.

"I'm sorry, I got jealous of him and I said something I shouldn't have," he explains.

"It's okay," I say softly and he pokes me in my side that makes me laugh from being so ticklish.

"There's that beautiful smile," he shoots me a wide tooth grin.


	3. Fluid Sexuality

It felt like forever since my feet were in my pointe shoes, and they welcomed the stiffness, it was their home. I was currently in the Rosewood dance studio stretching my shoes before I placed them one and took my place at the barre. I focused on my turnout before I stretched gently to the sides. I did a series of pliés and grande pliés, and after ten minutes of stretch in feet, calves and thighs, I felt ready to begin. I had been working on my choreography for my audition that was only a month away. I needed to get into his dance studio and have him coach me that was the only reason we moved. I let the music flow through me and my emotions take over as I stood on my pointe shoes and moved across the room. It always felt like I was walking on water whenever I danced, all my worries disappeared and the only thing of importance was nailing a performance piece or a move. I lose track of time and all sense of my surroundings.

"Oh my God, you are a ballerina," I'm pulled out of my thoughts by Kyle from the other night and I smile at him, he looks clean-shaven.

"Yes, through and through, you got a problem?" I smirk at him jokingly.

"None at all, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind a dance partner," he asks and I look at him nervously.

"I don't know if you can keep up with the ballet moves," I say and he chuckles.

"I've been practicing since I was 7," he smiles and I look in shock.

"No way! Why give me so much grief?" I ask.

"I was just messing with you," he says before he takes off his shirt and sweatpants to reveal his tights. We both begin to dance together and our chemistry is so palpable. Our movements flow together unlike anyone I've ever danced with and the feelings are so fresh and raw as the song Cold by Jorge Méndez plays. Its like the emotions extending from his fingertips are fusing with mine as they curl together and he brings me into him before I lean down and lift my leg vertically where I he holds it for a seconds, and picks me up in the position and twirls. Our silence is being filled by so many unsaid words through our movements. I feel weightless in his arms, like a feather as the gush of air spreads onto my face turning in circles. Normally I'd be dizzy, but now I'm anything but. He's expressing the unrequited love of the story as I am breaking down and we both know that we're not alone. As the song comes to an end we're both out of breath and looking at each other.

"Did you feel that?" he asks and I nod.

"I've never experienced that with a dance partner before," I say.

"Neither have I," he looks in shock. "And you can tell your boyfriend not to worry," he breaks the seriousness of the moment.

"He's not really my boyfriend," I laugh and he looks at me in confusion. "Cade is my best friend. He's from back home, but I'm gay," I say proudly and he smiles.

"So I have an official wing-woman?" he asks brightly.

"Looks like it," I say and we exchange numbers.

"Dance with me," he says and turns on To Build a Home by Cinematic Orchestra and we begin sharing different moves with each other ( **Step Up Revolution Final Dance Scene** ).

"I had fun dancing with you Emily, I hope we can do it again," he says while I'm packing up.

"You can count on it," I smile and leave him the room. I drive aimlessly back home not really paying attention. Once I park outside I see the girls walking over.

"Hey guys," I smile to them.

"Hey Emily," they say.

"What's up? I was just about to go for a run I say leading them inside my house and up the stairs where I change into my shorts but can't find a clean shirt.

"We were wondering if you wanted to come over for a sleep over later tonight?" Hanna asks.

"Yeah that sounds dope," I smile at them through the mirror.

"Mind if I join you for that run?" I look back at Spencer.

"Sure, let me just get you some shorts and a t-shirt," I say as I flip through the boxes, but can't find any.

"Cade!" I yell and I hear his big footsteps. He comes into the room shirtless and sweaty, I'm guessing from weight training.

"Where are my shirts and shorts?" I ask and he lets out a sigh.

"They're right here," he says going inside my closet and bringing out the box and setting it on my bed.

"Thanks," I smile and he returns it.

"Going for a run?" he asks sipping down the rest of my water.

"Yeah, I just came back from the studio," I say passing Spencer a shirt and shorts.

"How was it? Have you worked on strengthening your core?" he asks and I shake my head. "We'll work on it when you get back".

"It was fun, I ran into that guy from the party, Kyle," I say closing my eyes at the slip and I hear him huff.

"I see," he says crossing his arms.

"You guys want to come running?" I ask the other girls and they shake their heads.

"Yeah I'd love to," Alison responds and they all look in shock before she sets a glare. "Come on Han, Aria, it'll be fun," she says and ropes them into it and I give them their shirts and shorts.

"He's a nice guy Cade and a really good dancer. I mean you should've seen us together, and the best part is he dances ballet," I say excitedly and that coaxes a half smile out of them.

"I guess you can't be all straight dancing ballet as a guy," he thinks he whispers but it comes out so everyone can hear.

"Wow, where'd you learn to whisper, in an airplane?" I shoot back and his cheeks flush.

"Anyways, your dad wants you to call him" he says and I go numb.

"Why? What's wrong? What'd he say to you?" I ask.

"Slow down Nani, call him, he really wants to speak to you," he restates and I roll my eyes knowing I won't get anything out of him.

"What's Nani? I thought your name was Emily," Hanna asks and Cade smiles brightly.

"It means beautiful in my language," he says.

"Is that not your language Emily?" Spencer asks and I frown.

"He would've said our language, but he said my language as if you don't speak the same kind," she observes.

"Oh I speak Hawaiian, but my parents are Filipino and Caucasian, so I also speak Tagalog," I explain to them and they nod.

"Ready guys?" I ask and we head downstairs where I run into my mom.

"Hey sweetie, who are they?" she asks.

"Mom meet Hanna, Spencer, Alison and Aria," I say introducing them.

"Hi Mrs. Fields, we really enjoyed your pie," Hanna compliments and my mom smiles brightly.

"Thanks, it's one of my specialty!" she says and I can feel a full conversation coming on about food.

"Mom, we're going out for a run and I was invited to a sleepover," I say.

"Okay sounds good sweetie, have a good run guys," she waves us off and I set off for the path to the downtown. Spencer has no problem keeping up with my pace, Hanna and Aria fall behind and I'm forced to slow down, Alison seems to be trying to keep up, refusing to let the fatigue show. We're halfway there when Hanna stops abruptly.

"I can't do this," she cries.

"Yes you can Hanna, you can make it, we're halfway there," I encourage her.

"I can't, I'd rather just stick my fingers down my throat," she says and I hope they didn't notice my flinch.

"Hanna let's go, I don't accept quitters, never have, never will! Now get your ass up and run," I say sternly and she looks at me in shock before getting up and running at a faster pace. "See, not too bad, just pace yourself. We all start somewhere Han," I pat her back and move up towards Spencer who has Alison beside her.

"Nice pep talk Coach Fields," Spencer jokes.

"Just the way I was raised," I say and the rest of the run is spent in silence. We stop off at a deli and have a sandwich before walking back to the house.

"Thanks Emily, for showing me that I could actually do something I put my mind to," she smiles brightly at me and I return it.

"No problem, if you ever want to run again just let me know," I say back.

"Alright we're meeting back at Hanna's house at 8, don't be late," Alison orders and we all separate. It's still 6, so I have time to do other stuff.

"Hey Cade," I say seeing him outside working on my BMX bike. It was another form of workout that we enjoyed together.

"Hey Nani," he says focusing on tightening the bearings.

"She's almost complete," I say resting my arms on his shoulders.

"I know, she's a beauty," he admires. "You ready to work on your core?" he asks and I nod. He stands and picks me up so I can wrap my legs around his waist. "Four sets of thirty," he says and I begin to perform sit-ups. It's become a common practice to use each other as gym tools when we couldn't afford to go to the gym back on the island. In the middle of my third set I feel the familiar burn in my abs. After a series of exercises to work out my abs, arms and legs, I was absolutely drenched in sweat. It never really bothered me when people would say how perfect we were together, or stare at us when we'd work out together, but I realized it made it harder for him to move on with people encouraging us.

"Alright go take a shower stinky," he wrinkled his nose at me.

"I could say the same for you," I put my hands on his chest and laugh and he picks me up throwing me over his shoulder dragging me into the house. I ran upstairs and jumped in the shower letting the steam wash away the sweat from today. I knew my muscles would be sore, but it was a feeling I enjoyed more than anything it showed my hard work. I exited the shower to see Cade in my room with nothing on.

"Cade what are you doing?" I yelled slightly.

"I'm looking for a towel," he said calmly even though the situation was anything but. "What? It's nothing you haven't seen before," he rolled his eyes and he did have a point.

"Whatever," I sigh and go to get dressed and by the time he finds the towel in one of my boxes he's already dry. I put on my comfy joggers and tank and pull one of Cade's sweatshirts over me since it's so huge.

"Bye!" I yell from downstairs and see Cade appear at the top at least somewhat decent with his boxer briefs.

"Have fun Nani," he says and I walk across the street.

"It's open!" they yell and I walk inside to see everyone there.

"Damn, you guys already here?" I ask rhetorically.

"It's a shame since you live right across the street," Aria smirks.

"Alright so let's get this party started," Hanna slaps her hand on the table and pulls out bottles of alcohol and beer.

"I got something better," I smile and pull out my stash of weed and wrappers and they all chuckle.

"Oh God Emily, who knew?" Hanna chuckles hard.

"My ex girlfriend introduced me," I said and they smiled.

"Okay everyone take a shot to loosen up," she demands while pouring in the shot glasses. It feels nice to have it burn my throat. I place it back on the table and she's pouring us another one and down it goes again.

"Let's play a game," Alison suggests.

"How about Never Have I Ever," Spencer says and we all nod in agreement.

"Okay I'll start," Hanna says. "Never have I ever kissed someone in the rain," she says and Spencer and I take a shot.

"Last fall, there was a huge thunderstorm and Toby had the idea to travel and I met him outside and there it was," she smiles at the memory.

"It's always raining on and off in Hawaii, it's impossible not to kiss in the rain," I say and they chuckle.

"Never have I ever joined the mile high club," Aria says and we all look at her, but no one takes a shot.

"Never have I ever slept with a woman," Alison says looking intently at me and I down two shots.

"Never have I ever filmed a sex tape," I say and Hanna drinks a shot. "I knew it!" I yell and we both laugh.

"Alright another game, how about Truth or Dare?" Hanna asks.

"Sure, you first," I tell her.

"Aria, truth or dare?" she asks.

"Dare," she responds.

"I dare you to drink a shot of hot sauce," she smiles deviously and Aria's eyes widen.

"Fine," Aria grumbles before completing the dare and her face contorts in one of pain and her eyes water. I pass her a bottle of water that she happily accepts.

"Truth or Dare Spencer?" Aria asks.

"Truth," she says.

"Is it true that you skipped two periods to have sex with Toby in the locker room?" she asks and Spencer's eyes widen.

"How'd you know?" she asks suddenly and we all laugh at her admission.

"I have my ways," Aria answers vaguely laughing at her friend's reaction.

"Truth or Dare Alison?" Spencer shoots the blonde a glare for still laughing.

"Dare," she answers as if it's the most natural answer.

"I dare you to kiss Emily, and no peck, I mean a full on kiss, no tongue though," she says smiling as Alison's cheeks redden before schooling her features to a neutral expression.

"Okay," she says and saunters over to me while I sit back on my hands. She straddles my waist and after a little hesitation I lean in and capture her lips. They're the softest lips I've ever felt and she smells like oranges, oh my favorite fruit. Why did you have to do this to me Alison? I feel myself loosing control as I lean forward and cup her cheek in my hand as the other hand holds her head closer to me and our lips start bruising each other.

"Ahem," I hear from the side of me and we break apart to see Hanna looking at us with a knowing smile and Alison moves away from me so fast it's as if I burned her.

"Truth or dare Emily?" Alison asks after she gains her composure.

"Truth," I say.

"Have you ever had sex with a boy?" she asks and the question catches me so off guard. "Hello, earth to Emily," she says and I notice that I drifted away from the conversation.

"Sorry what was the question?" I ask again hoping she chooses a different one.

"Have you ever had sex with a boy?" she reiterates.

"Yes," I reply simply and I see the girls in shock, all but Alison who's wearing that same neutral expression.

"Oh my God, was it Cade? His body is amazing, it's to die for," Hanna says slightly drooling while fishing for information.

"Geesh Hanna, if I didn't know you were in love with Caleb, I would say you were in love with this guy," Aria jokes with her.

"Answer the question Em," Hanna says ignoring Aria's joke.

"Yes, it was with Cade," I say.

"How was it? When did it happen? Were you guys a couple?" she fires question after question.

"Slow down Hanna," I laugh. "It hurt a lot in the beginning, but then not so much. I was a freshman and he was a senior, it was at one of the bonfire parties our friends have every weekend. We'd grown up together since kids and I hadn't confronted my feelings for girls yet. I was blissfully unaware you could say. So I started high school and I got a lot of attention from all the boys but there was none I liked. Anyways, long story short, I wanted to lose my virginity to a guy I trusted rather than one who would spread my business around school, and my parents loved him. We were together for a year, until I learned that I really like girls. I came out to my parents, friends and honestly he was the hardest. I don't think he still fully understands because he still gets jealous of other guys, rather than the girls I'm ogling," I say and they chuckle at the last statement.

"I knew you guys were too close to be 'brother and sister'," Alison smiles at the new information she acquired.

"Yeah, I never say I'm 100% lesbian because of the time I had with him and sexuality is always fluid, at least that's how I see it, but I'm way more attracted to woman than anything," I say.

"So would you sleep with him again?" Hanna asks curiously and I think about the question.

"I don't see it happening, I would hate to mess with someone's feelings like that if I know I can't return them the way they want, but never say never, it usually ends up happening when you do," I answer honestly.

"So how did he react to your girlfriends?" Aria asked.

"He never really bought up his feelings, but I knew it made him a little uncomfortable because you can't really compete, you can't compare the two. He didn't get along with any of my exes though and they didn't like that he was always around".

"So are you looking to date anyone at Rosewood?" Hanna asks brightly.

"No, I'm focused on my dancing, that's why we moved, so I could be coached by Alexei Sokolov and once I audition for his dance studio group and hopefully get accepted, it becomes my life until I can get into Juilliard or a ballet company, which ever comes first," I say honestly.

"You really want to be a ballerina," Alison looks at me curiously.

"I've dedicated my life to this, broken so many toes, fingers, and ankles, I'll be damned if I don't see this through. It's been all I've dreamt about since I was a little girl," I say and I hear my phone buzzing. "Guys, I have to take this," and exit the house.

"Hey papa," I say and open FaceTime.

"Hey sweetie, I just wanted to see how you were settling in," he responds still dressed in his ACUs.

"I'm doing fine, I went to the studio today," I reply excitedly.

"That's great Emmy, I'm proud of you for following your dreams and never giving up, you make me so proud," he smiles.

"You're the hero dad," I smile back.

"That's a daddy's girl, now I have something to tell you and you have to be strong," he says in a familiar tone.

"NO!" I say sharply.

"Emily, listen to me, it's my duty, I have to go," he says and I look down not wanting to speak anymore. "Now I know how you get, that's why I asked Cade to go with you guys and stay a bit longer".

"Where? Where are you leaving us for now?" I ask harshly.

"Syria," he lets out a deep sigh and I choke back a sob as tears crowd in my eyes.

"It's not fair dad," I say softly.

"Damn it Emily! I'm trying here. I have to go, I'll be in Rosewood in a week before I go to Texas to train and then I leave at the end of the month. This is the life I chose and I'm sorry you're paying," he openly cries now.

"You're going to fight ISIS aren't you?" I ask.

"I can't tell you that, you know," he says and I nod. "Be strong for Daddy, and I'll see you soon," he says.

"Lieutenant Colonel Fields," someone calls him.

"I have to go sweetie, I love you," he says and blows a kiss in to the screen and I follow suit before it disconnects and I let the tears flow freely before I suck them back up and put on a brave face. I stand there for a while and let my emotions settle and my eyes to return back to normal. I really wish my dad wasn't in the military, but he found something that makes him feel whole and he's doing something only few people can, and I had to accept it a long time ago that he leaves for extended periods of time and he may not return at all, but it didn't make it any easier to swallow that lump every time I saw his retreating form.


	4. Work Harder

Pain, that's the only feeling my body could register. I had woken up before dawn to sneak in my house to retrieve my bag. After quietly exiting I revved up my car and made my way to the school and I've been here ever since. I saw the sun come up on my way in and it was beautiful, but it wasn't enough for distraction. I needed to let out my emotions, but the only one that came forward was my anger. I was filled with molten rage at my father and the stupid military, that I was useless and couldn't do anything about it. It felt like I wasn't enough for him to stay, like he was itching to be stuck in some desert instead of with his family.

"You know why you can't nail that move right?" Kyle's voice breaks me out of my thoughts.

"Not today Kyle," I saw through sweat and clenched teeth.

"Your anger is controlling you, not the other way around," he says still not getting the message.

"I said not today Kyle," I say a bit louder but he's unfazed.

"Your clenched teeth don't scare me ballerina," he says before turning off the music and plugging in his own iPod. "This is a song that will fit you right now".

"What is it?" I ask.

"It's Sparrow by Miika Mettianinen," he replies and takes my hand. He hugs my hips from behind and taps my legs to let me know to get on pointe as we cross the room. The music once again flowing through me, I don't make the move in time. "Stop, let go of the thoughts and just dance, your emotions and whatever it is, it's holding you back. Just flow, let the anger extend through your fingers," he instructs before picking me up and I suck in my stomach self-consciously. I try to tune out the fact that my father's leaving once again and calm my heart rate. We look so beautiful in the mirror, so graceful and blended. He dips me back and my hair falls out of its bun after hours of being tossed around. We end with his arms wrapped around my waist and looking into my eyes. "You feel ready to work on something else?" he asks and I nod. This beautiful but sad melody plays and I feel him pick me up as I wrap my hands softly around his head and lean my head back. I close my eyes and let the feel of his breath on my breasts take over. He gently puts me down and we do a triple pirouette that transitions into a Three Double and one Triple Fouettés en Tournant. Before the song comes to an end he asks, "the Cheshire cat lift," I want to say no because last time ended horribly with my old partner, but I'm starting to trust him lifting me in the air. I run a little and he lifts me and pushes me a little into the air as I straighten my legs and once I'm securely placed in his arms I feel safe. He twirls me around until the end of the song and I can't help but giggle like a schoolgirl. "You're beautiful from down here," he says and I blush a little.

"You're not so bad yourself flexing those muscles," I respond back and he moves me around before I'm back on the ground. "Thank you Kyle," I say seriously.

"Not a problem, it's not safe dancing when you're angry that's how you end up with stress fractures or worse, so I'm glad I could help out," he says.

"Hey Emily, we've been looking for you," the girls come bounding into the studio.

"Well hello guys," I say a little guilty. "I just came here".

"You left without saying a word," Spencer said.

"Sorry, I like to get in early practices," I say to them.

"Who's this?" Hanna asks.

"Guys this is Kyle, Kyle these are my friends Hanna, Spencer, Alison, and Aria," I introduce them and he waves.

"Guys, I can catch up with you later, I'm going to be here for a while," I say to them, but Alison shakes her head.

"No, we want to see you dance," she smiles.

"We're going to perfect that performance, I think it'd be a great audition piece," he says and the beginning chords to the Cinematic Orchestra begins to play. I see the girls go off to the side and usually I'm not shy about dancing, but there's a difference between hip-hop and ballet and a party and studio time. I look at him warily and he picks up on it, so instead of speaking he grabs my hands as they sit off to the side in their chairs. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Once I'm standing I feel him behind me as he places his hand around my collarbone and we're once again trapped in the music. "Now instead of the regular pirouette, I want you to do a leg hold pirouette, show me," he instructs and walks away a little bit at I attempt it, but I fail, getting caught up in my emotions again. I remembered the first time I did it back in 4th grade and I just had to show my dad. "Emily snap out of it," he says sternly. "Again," he says and I do it again and again and again until I feel slightly dizzy. "Get out of your anger and do the damn thing," he says and I try it again but fail, so I try to do a triple pirouette and then a leg hold for ten seconds before attempting it. "That's it!" he says once I nail it.

"Sorry for taking so long," I say and he shakes his head.

"It's alright, we get stuck in our head sometimes," he says and I nod.

"Can you put on another instrumental?" I ask and he nods.

"Yeah shared my playlist with you on YouTube, I have to go," he says and packs up his stuff. "But here's one you should definitely listen to," he presses play and runs out the room.

"Asshole!" I yell when I hear the Exorcist theme song, but it's not as bad as I thought it would be to dance to. I stand on pointe begin moving across the room where I transition into a triple pirouette. I nail it with ease before attempting to do a Kitri Grand Jeté. I've been practicing this move for 6 months and I still can't extend my right foot all the way back. I fall on the floor and see the girls gasp and get up but I hold up my hand to let them know I'm okay. I try again and this fall is worse than the last time, but I'm determined. I'm pushing myself to the bone because I want to be the best, when I walk into the audition I want to know my moves like the back of my hands. I try again and again and I feel tears trying to form at the corner of my eyes.

"Stop this!" Cade says bursting in. "I've watched you for the past half hour trying to get this move. You're going to hurt yourself," he says but I ignore him and attempt it again.

"Fuck," I say loudly when I land on the floor.

"Just give up," he says and I glare at him.

"Never," I spit back at him before getting up with a slight limp before attempting it again and again.

"I can't watch this anymore," he says from the corner.

"Then leave, no one asked you to be here, oh wait, that's a lie, my father did," I say angrily and recognition flashes on his face.

"So you talked to your dad?" he asks but gets no response as I feel the anger building up in me. "I see, so that's why you're here hurting yourself. I bet you've been here before dawn..." he says and I try to interrupt. "Don't fucking lie Emily," he yells and I go quiet. He hasn't used that tone in a long time. "I'm tired of going through this shit, I will not go through what we went through back home," he says angrily and I set him a cold glare. I stand up again and limp to the corner before running and attempting it and I thought I finally got it but I feel arms wrap around me tightly.

"Let me go Cade!" I say loudly pounding on his chest.

"No," he says.

"I said let me go! I want to go," I say finally breaking down. "It has to be perfect. It has to be perfect!" I repeat beating his chest viciously.

"Nothing is perfect," he says squeezing my shoulders but I push him away.

"Yes there is and I will get there," I say confidently. "Now I need to get this move before my audition and you can either stand off to the side or you can leave," I give him an ultimatum and he presses his lips into a fine line before going to stand by the girls. I wipe away the little tears and attempt the move. After 7 times of landing on the floor awkwardly, I jump into the air, feeling weightless as my foot touches my head when I lean back and the other is straight ahead. I land perfectly before I let out a sigh. I want to smile that I finally nailed the move, but I'm not happy. Instead I do it again and again to make sure I don't lose it. A melody that I connected with so well began to take over my head and I let my emotions pour through and extend through my fingers. I imagine that Kyle was here lifting me as I perform a series of jumps, the air blowing past my ears between my locks. I transition to a leg hold pirouette, then dropping into regular pirouette and smoothly sliding into a penché when the music finishes.

"Your still so beautiful every time you dance," I hear Cade say behind me. I ignore his compliment and slide into a split bending, pushing and pull my feet as I try to stretch a little more. I stand up and move my legs in rotation before lifting it up and putting it down fast. After a few moments I do the needle move. I hold it for a few seconds before letting it down slowly. I got to the barre and stretch again before sinking to the floor to remove my pointe shoes. I see that my feet are all bloodied and bruised and I suck my teeth at the sight. I pull out my wraps but they're taken away. "Let me," he looks down sympathetically and I nod. He starts from my ankle and once he gets to a sensitive part I feel a tear leave as my other leg starts to shake. "Hold still Nani," he says softly while I bite on a finger and close my eyes. Once he's done with one foot he starts wrapping the other. "Okay done," he pats my knee.

"Thanks Cade," I say before standing and I have a huge limp.

"Girls meet us at the house," he says to them as he picks me up knowing I can barely walk and they nod softly. "I'm driving," he smiles before putting me in the passenger seat. "I found your daughter," he says carrying me into the house.

"Put me down before she sees," I say to him and there's no room for protesting. He sets me down on my feet gently.

"Let me guess, you were in the studio," my mom says coming from the kitchen.

"Of course mom," I smile at her.

"You alright sweetie? You look kind of pale," she says and I know my face is constricted to hide the pain. "Did you hurt yourself practicing? I told you about going to hard…" she begins to ramble but I cut her off.

"No mom, I'm fine just tired," I say lamely and she gives me a look of doubt before I walk normally and begin up the steps, "see".

"Alright, if you say so," she says. "Just go on upstairs, Emily I expect you to give your father a call, and take a shower before dinner," she says.

"I talked to him last night," I tell her and she looks surprised

"Oh, I see, are you okay?" she asks and I roll my eyes.

"Yes mom, everything's fine," I say before going up the stairs, but I can still hear them.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of her," I hear Cade say to her and she lets out a sigh of relief before I hear footsteps following behind me.

"Come on stinky," he says holding his hand over his nose while pushing me into the bathroom. He starts the bath water and pours in some bubbles before sitting on the edge while I sit on the toilet. "Up here," he pats his leg and I put my feet on it as he begins to unravel the wrap and crinkle his nose.

"It's not that bad," I roll my eyes at him,

"Do you really want to be on my end?" he jokes.

"You should be used to it anyway," I smile at him. After they're unwrapped I see the water's almost ready so I try to take off my leotard, but my arms are oddly stiff.

"I got you," he says and removes the straps and pulls it down and takes my tights with it. I step into the bath water and my muscles relax as best they could.

"Thanks Cade, I really needed this," I smile at him.

"So did everyone else," he says holding out my clothes as far away from him as possible and tosses it into the hamper.

"If you wanted a massage all you had to do was ask, no need to work yourself to death to get a free one," he smiles while sitting on the toilet.

"Mhmm whatever, so are you going to stare all night or are you going to get in?" I ask and he has no trouble finding his answer. He strips down and climbs in behind me.

"We haven't done this in a while," he comments and I nod. I hear the water shift as he moves to get the cloth and soap and I feel the substance on my back signaling that he's washing me. He massages my scalp and washes my hair and 20 minutes later we're both clean. I wrap a towel around me as he does him and we walk out to see the girls sitting around my room, eyes shifting between Cade and me. He clears his throat slightly before saying, "I'm going to put on clothes, be back," and exits the room.

"Want to explain?" Hanna asks with a smile playing on her lips.

"We just took a bath," I say with a frown.

"Talk about intimate," Aria breathes out.

"What are you guys talking about?" I ask.

"Taking a bath with a guy you claim to have no feelings for, hmmm kinda suspicious," Hanna says.

"Guys we're just friends, we've always taken baths and showers together," I say not thinking anything of it as I put on a matching red lace bra and panties. I limp over to my drawer.

"When did you have time to decorate your room?" Alison asks.

"I didn't, Cade probably did it," I say.

"Oh my God, you let him touch your stuff?" Hanna asks in shock.

"It's no biggie, she even lets me organize her panties. She's so messy and unorganized that one of us has to be," he jokes before entering the room. He's still shirtless and dripping with water but he has on shorts and adidas slides.

"Hey!" I punch him slightly as he sits on the bed. "Where are my pajamas?" I ask him.

"You don't sleep with clothes on," he says and I nod.

"Yeah, I mean like shorts or something, I can't stay like this," I roll my eyes.

"Sure you can, you don't mind right girls?" he asks and the girls chuckle and shake their head. "I don't mind, they don't mind, so see you're fine".

"Shut up!" I say and ruffle his wet hair while climbing on the bed and resting against the pillows.

"Fine, I was going to FaceTime Matt from back home, I guess I can stay like this," I joke and his face turns to stone. The reaction I wanted.

"Whatever," he says before getting up to get a pair of shorts and a tank top. He throws them at me and I gratefully accept.

"So Cade, tell us more about you," Hanna demands.

"What do you want to know?" he asks and pulls my feet into his lap. He puts ointment and bandages on the cuts and starts to massage them and I can't help but moan.

"Oh my god," I say with a breathy moan. "That feels really good," I compliment and he sends me a smile.

"Well what is your ethnicity, like are you Hawaiian?" she asks and Aria rolls her eyes.

"Nice Han," she mumbles.

"No, I'm Samoan," he chuckles. "But I was born and raised in Hawaii".

"So what do you do for a living?" she asks.

"Well I'm going into my sophomore year at college, I play football at the University of Hawaii," he smiles at her.

"Ooh a college boy, what do you study?" she asks excitedly.

"I'm a double major in Environmental Design and Mathematics," he says.

"Oh God, who likes math? Its like hieroglyphics looking back at you on a paper," she says and everyone explodes in laughter.

"Ah it's not so bad," he smiles.

"So what do you want to do with that?" Spencer asks.

"Go into commercial real estate, my family has our own real estate company and it has been passed down for generations," he explains while starting to wrap my feet up.

"Oh that's so…" Aria was about to say but was cut off by my mom bursting through the door.

"Oh sweetie," she says and lets out a large breath.

"Mom, are you okay?" I say jumping towards her but it turns into a limp.

"Yes, everything is okay, someone's here to see you though," she says.

"What? Who? Where?" I ramble before looking at the door.


	5. Papa!

"Well aren't you going to say hi to papa?" my dad says. He's dressed in his Army ACUs.

"Dad, wha-what are you doing here?" I ask in shock.

"I came home early to visit my girls," he smiles and after it soaks in that he's here, I run into his arms.

"Oh my, Daddy!" I say and jump into his arms.

"That's my girl," he picks me up and twirls me around and I feel his lips pressed against my head. "I've missed you so much," I hear a slight crack in his voice. "You've gotten skinner too," he remarks.

"Yeah, I've been working out a lot," I smile up at him once he sets me down.

"And eating right?" he asks and my face flushes and I nod back towards the girls to let him know we have company. "And Cade, how's everything?" he asks taking the hint.

"Everything's alright sir," Cade answers formally each of them shaking hands and I look back and forth at the dynamic they have.

"Taking care of my daughter right?" he asks seriously and I hear Hanna snort.

"Of course sir," Cade swallows thickly and my dad wraps him in a hug, even though it looks kind of ridiculous since Cade has over 50 pounds on him, but its love nonetheless.

"How's football going? Have you thought about the ROTC program at the university, I know the Commander in charge and can put in a good word for you," my dad rambles on.

"Dad! Cade is not joining the military, ever!" I say with finality and he looks at me in shock.

"Who are these lovely girls?" he asks changing the topic.

"These are my friends Hanna, Aria, Alison and Spencer," I smile at them and they shake his hands.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Fields," they each say.

"Nice to meet you girls too," he smiles. "I don't know about you guys but I'm starved, let's all go out to eat, my treat".

"Tonight?" I ask.

"Well I don't want to eat tomorrow if I'm hungry now," he clarifies sarcastically.

"I don't know if the girls had anything planned," I say trying to change his mind.

"No, we're not doing anything, I can never pass up a free meal," Hanna says and the other girls nod.

"See it's settled then, are you guys ready?" he asks and everyone shakes his or her head.

"I have to get dressed," I say and look at Cade and he nods.

"And we need to change," the girls nod.

"Alright we'll meet back here in 45 minutes," he instructs before leaving and everyone else follows except Cade.

"I really don't want to go," I say to Cade and he wraps his arms around me.

"I know, but come on you only have a little bit of time before he leaves," he says softly and I nod against his shoulder. "Let me go get dressed, I think you'd look really nice in this navy blue dress," he says and goes to pick out the dress he bought me for my birthday a couple months ago".

"Of course I'll wear it," I smile at him before he leaves. After fixing my make up and hair, he walks back in.

"You still haven't put on the dress?" he chuckles while buttoning up a white shirt. I take off my shorts and slip it on.

"Can you zip it up?" I ask and he comes up behind me and I can feel his rough fingers caress my back while I stare at him in the mirror as I'm applying lip-gloss.

"There you go," he says moving his hand to squeeze my shoulder. The dress is gorgeous; it is a three quarter length tight dress with dark lace and beading.

"I think these would look perfect with it," he says and I frown as he looks in my closet and he returns with the navy Corneille red bottoms I was looking at a while back.

"You didn't!" I say in shock and glee.

"I did, I saw you looking at them and I knew they'd be beautiful on you. Here," he says taking one out of the box and bends down and slips it on my foot. I look in the mirror and see that it goes perfectly with the dress.

"You're right, it is perfect," I smile down at him and he puts the other one on.

"Beautiful," he says moves my hair from my back and lays it on my right shoulder before kissing me on my cheek. "Shall we?" he asks sweetly. We make our way downstairs to see that everyone but Hanna has returned until she comes bustling in the door.

"You live right across the street and you're still the last one," I mock what she'd only said a few nights ago.

"Ha-ha very funny, beauty and perfection take time," she smiles and we all chuckle.

"Alright, let's go everyone," my dad claps his hands and we're making our way outside.

"Where are we going dad?" I ask.

"This Italian restaurant over in Philly, just follow behind us," he says and the girls pile into my truck as my parents get into their car.

"You can drive," I hand Cade the keys. I turn on the radio as everyone gets wrapped in their own conversations.

"When does training camp start?" I ask turning to him.

"In about 4 weeks, do you want me to stay until then?" he asks hesitantly and I nod.

"Yeah, I don't want to be alone especially after my dad leaves," I reason and I see something flash over his face. "And I'm not ready to say bye to you yet," I say honestly and he smiles at me as I wrap my hands in his hair.

"Never nani, you're stuck with me," he says focusing back on the road. An hour later and we arrive to the restaurant.

"Oh my God, this restaurant is five stars, I tried to get a reservation here with Toby but they were booked a year in advance, I wonder how your dad got the reservations," Spencer says in shock and I shrug my shoulders. Cade grabs my hand and leads us in the restaurant.

"Fields for 8," my dad says to the hostess and she checks the list.

"Right this way," she says politely before leading us to a large table and a waiter approaches as she leaves.

"Hello, I'm Tony, can I get you started with drinks?" he asks.

"We'll have water with lemon," Cade answers for us.

"Marini for her and a whiskey for me," my dad says.

"Sprite, ginger ale, coke, sparkling water," the girls answered and he writes it on his pad before leaving.

"So girls, tell me about you," my dad queries.

"We grew up in this town, we're going into our junior year like Emily, I like fashion," Hanna answers first.

"Fascinating so are you looking into fashion and art programs for college?" he asks with interest and Hanna nods furiously.

"Yes, I'm mostly interested in the one in New York," she says.

"I'm interested in English and Photography, Hollis has a great liberal arts program," Aria says.

"And where's Hollis located?" he asks.

"It's in Rosewood," she smiles.

"Ahh so not too far from home," he smiles back. "What about you, Spencer?"

"Ivy League is my goal, I want to go to Princeton like my parents, Pre-Law," she responds confidently.

"You come from a family of lawyers?" he asks.

"Yes, both of my parents," she smiles at him.

"And you Alison?" he asks.

"I'm not really sure," she says with a light frown.

"Well you have a little time to figure it out," he says politely.

"How's dancing coming along? When's your audition for that Alexei guy?" he turns his attention to me.

"Its- uh, its going great dad. The audition is in a month and a half. I'm working on my choreography," I smile at him.

"Have you…" he was cut off by the waiter returning to place the drinks. "Have you guys decided on any meal or appetizers?"

"Yes, I'll have chicken Parmesan with spaghetti," my dad says and everyone else gives off their orders.

"I'll just have a Cesar salad," I say and I feel my dad's eyes on me.

"She'll also have the Spaghetti and meatballs," my dad says and I look at him pleadingly but he gives me a stare that forces me to turn back to my drink. I squeeze Cade's hand and I feel him entwine our fingers and my body starts to relax.

"Just relax, it'll all be over soon," he whispers to me and I nod

"I don't want to sleep alone tonight," I say and he notices the look in my eye.

"You won't," he rubs my hand with his thumb. After two long hours we're finally headed back home.

"Your dad is the best Em," Hanna says.

"Yeah he's the greatest," I say through a forced smile.

"Bye Em, we'll see you tomorrow?" Aria asks and I nod. My parents had already gone into the house and when Cade and I enter it's completely dark, save for the light upstairs.

"Can you unzip me?" I ask him after he takes off his shirt. After I hear him unzip the dress I feel him removing it. His hands crawling up my legs until he's standing behind me and his arm wraps around my waist. I look at his eyes through the mirror and see they're almost black, and I recognize that look. He starts to kiss my cheek and then my neck. "Cade," I whisper out while he's sucking on my neck and I pull at his hair as his hands travel to my breasts and give them a soft squeeze. I turn around in his arms and push him on the bed so I can straddle him. I grab the back of his neck as I dive in for a kiss. We hadn't done this in years but it still feels like home. I dart my tongue out against his lip and he opens his mouth. Our tongues clash against each other and I can feel his large hands cover half my back. "We shouldn't be doing this," I say against lips and he nods in agreement. "We should stop," I say kissing his lips in between each word.

"Definitely," he says in a deeper voice.

"I don't want to stop," I say resting my hands against his chest.

"I've missed you," he says and unclasps my bra before turning us around and my back is resting against the bed. He leans back to remove my bra completely and I cover up, somehow self-conscious. "Don't," he removes my arms. "You're the most beautiful girl I've seen," he says before hovering over me and kissing my lips, and then moving down on my neck. His breath ghosts over my breasts and I suck in the air as my back arches. His tongue swirls around my nipple and I grab the back of his head to keep him there. When his lips attach to my nipple as the other hand plays with my other one it feels amazing.

"God," I moan and he continues his path down my stomach, biting and licking my hips eliciting squeaks at the shock and pleasure. I feel his fingers play with the hem of my panties before his eyes meet mine.

"May I?" he asks and I nod. He slides them down painfully slow. I close my eyes when I feel him kiss my ankles, then the inside of my knee, near my inner thigh and he breaths on the place I need him most before slinking his way up my body. He pulls back I hear his buckle snap and I help him out of his pants. Once he's fully naked I see him reach in my nightstand drawer and remove a condom and I arch an eyebrow as to how it go there. "What? You never know when you might need one," he says innocently and puts on his doe eyes and I smile at him. He slides the condom on and I look down to see that he's gotten bigger since my freshman year. I never really paid attention the times after when we took showers or baths, but now it was hard to ignore. "I love you Emily Catherine Fields," he says so strongly that I have no choice but to believe him.

"I love you too Cade," I smile at him. He kisses me softly again before resting on his hands. I grab his shaft and line him against my center and I let out a gasp when I feel him enter me. The intrusion, although expected, I still needed time to adjust. I grab onto his back and pull his full weight on top of me.

"I don't want to crush you," he says trying to sit up slightly.

"You're not just stay like this, I want to feel you inside me for a while," I whisper in his ear and he relaxes and I feel a tear escape my eye.

"Are you okay nani?" he asks now looking me in the eyes.

"Everything's fine," I say and more tears spill over.

"If you don't want this, we can stop," he says and I shake my head.

"No don't I'm just being emotional and scared that you won't want me after this," I say honestly.

"I'll always want you," he says. "Even after you broke up with me and told me that you like girls, I've never stopped wanting you and loving you," he clarifies.

"I'm scared Cade," I say and hug him tightly as his thumb wipes away my tears.

"Don't be, I'm right here," he says and rests his head in the crook of my neck before pulling out and pushing back in. He does this motion a few more times to set a rhythm and I feel the familiar pull in my stomach. He pushes on his hands as my legs wrap around his waist and he gains speed. Our open mouths touching slightly and I feel his hand travel down past my stomach until he touches my clit and I throw my head back in the pillows. He mouth sucks on my now exposed neck as my eyes flutter to the back of my head at the feeling of being so close to another human.

"Cade, I'm-I'm," I say not able to finish the sentence.

"Let go baby," he moans roughly and the bass in his voice makes my skin vibrate. My body experiences hot and cold flashes as I feel my head enter a euphoric state and his mouth attaches to mine to drown out my orgasm and I feel him thrust roughly until his body freezes on top of mine as I dig my nails into his back. After he relaxes he pulls out and rolls over. He brings me to curl up beside him the sweat on our bodies mesh. I rest my head on his chest and my other hand wraps around his waist as he presses a kiss onto my hair. Instead of saying anything that will lead to awkwardness I feel myself slipping into a deep, but peaceful sleep. I've always felt safe in his arms and tonight wouldn't be any different.

 **Hey guys I hope you enjoyed the update and some of you may be in shock and others might have seen this coming or both. Please share your thoughts, good or bad! And please tell me who you ship more, Emison or Cade and Emily and please feel free to create them a ship name!**


	6. BMX Life

"Hey wake up," I feel strong hands shaking me awake.

"Mhmm," I moan out loud. "Five more minutes," I plead.

"Emily wake up before your dad finds us," I hear Cade clearly and what he says strokes the sleepiness away. I sit up and let the sheet fall to my waist revealing my naked glory and remnants of last night come flooding in my mind. I look to Cade and he's looking at me nervously. "I didn't want to leave you to wake up alone".

"Good I'm glad," I smile at him and he leans into kiss me. Eventually he's hovering over me with his large hands caving the mattress in. I move my hands to caress his face and his gruff beard. I never noticed how big his head was until I saw that my hand doesn't even cover ¾ of his face and I chuckle.

"What's so funny?" he asks.

"You have a big head," I say and he pokes my side eliciting a squeak.

"Shhh, we don't want to wake your parents," he scolds playfully.

"Don't poke me then caveman," I say pointing to his beard.

"You don't like it?" he asks.

"No…I love it," I smile and he returns the biggest one I've ever seen on his face.

"I am so happy right now, you make me the happiest man on Earth," he says kissing me before I get a chance to respond. The make out session turns into round two and by the time we're done I hear a knock at my door.

"Sweetie?" I hear my dad and Cade freaks out. I point towards the bathroom and he nods before collecting his clothes and rushing off.

"Hold on dad, I'm not dressed," I say through the door while pulling on clothes and doing my best to cover up last night and this mornings affairs. "What's up?" I ask as I pull the door open.

"Hey just wanted to know if you wanted to come for a run with your old man, I tried asking Cade, but he wasn't in his room," he says.

"Yeah sure, I think Cade might've went to town for some breakfast early this morning, I heard a door open and close," I lie easily.

"Alright, we'll leave in 15 minutes," he says and I nod before closing the door to get dressed.

"You can come out now," I say and Cade exits the bathroom. "Don't go back to your room until you hear us leave".

"Okay, when you get back, we can work on your core and go biking, and maybe we can talk about last night," he suggests the last part hesitantly.

"Sounds good to me," I say and stand on my toes to kiss him before rushing downstairs to get my father away from the house as soon as possible. I read on my IPod that its only 5:30 am so half the town is asleep. The run was relatively easy and filled with silence as I tuned into my music. We approach The Brew that has a few people scattered in their enjoying their early morning fix. After ordering our coffees we take a seat.

"So Emily, tell me how everything's really been," he demands.

"It's been okay I guess, just dancing, you know the usual," I say vaguely.

"Are you eating healthy?" he asks sternly.

"Yes dad, can we drop this?" I ask annoyed.

"I just want one less thing to worry about when I'm over there," he says and I feel the guilt trip coming.

"Dad it's no need to worry, I'm eating fine, I'm dancing and not pushing myself too hard, everything's under control," I say and he nods.

"So are you enjoying Cade being here?" he asks and I blush, hoping it has escaped him. "Oh I know that look! It seems as if he's found his way back into your heart," he smiles excitedly.

"He never had to find his way back, he's always had a place there, but yes our feelings have changed for each other, or more like mine has," I say with a slight frown.

"Listen sweetie, you know I support you whether your fall for a girl or boy and I know I'm slightly biased towards Cade because I've known him since he's been in diapers and his parents since I was a kid, but please be sure of your feelings before you invest time into his. He may come off as strong and tough, but he has a soft spot for you and I don't want you to ruin a good boy because you feel pressured to be with him," he explains and I feel tears come to my eyes.

"Thanks dad, that meant a lot to me. I mean I've always loved him, I just needed to see if I loved him as more than a friend without the aid of other people telling us we look great together and I don't know where this will go, but I think we might be able to try. It won't be easy with the long distance, but we'll talk about it later on today," I say and he smiles.

"I'm so proud of the woman you're becoming everyday," he says and we relax in silence before walking back home. It's almost 7 am when we get back and I see Cade in the driveway fixing up my BMX bike and his is already set to go.

"You ready to go?" he asks after locking the pegs on.

"Yeah, I saw a few spots towards town," I smile and he hands me the bike. We ride towards town doing a few minor 180s, 360s, grinds and tailspins. Since he's so big, he barely grinds or does park tricks, so when I ride with him I stick to flatland. Once we've found a comfy shaded spot we start to work on core exercises, again using each other as gym tools. Twenty minutes later and I'm exhausted and ready to go back home, but I knew we had to talk.

"So Nani, what do you want to do?" he asks.

"What do you want to do?" I ask back.

"I asked you first," he argues.

"Fair enough, I'd like to give us a try although it'd be difficult with the distance," I say honestly.

"I agree, but I'm willing to try," he says earnestly.

"I don't want to hurt you Cade, what if this doesn't work out?" I ask.

"Well then at least we know we tried, and if you do end up hurting me, I know it won't be consciously or directly and eventually I'd get over it because without you in my life, its like something missing and I hate that feeling," he says looking deep into my eyes and I'm compelled to believe every word that falls from his mouth.

"Then I want to try with you," I say and grab his face pulling him into me and kissing him roughly. His hands grab hold of my waist before attaching them to the back of my head where he slows down the kiss. His lips feel like silk against mine, ghostly painting a portrait of our love and all I do is follow his lead. I've always hated being out of control, but it feels empowering by giving most of it over to the one person who I trust the most.

"Let's go back home," he says and I nod before taking off my shirt to reveal a sports bra and he takes of his shirt, I'm really surprised he's lasted this long, he's been off the Island too long. We end up kissing each other a few times and almost falling but I feel free riding with the wind in my hair and the burn in my legs. I do a few McCircles once we pull up to the house, its one of my favorite tricks that took me forever to learn. I throw my bike on the pavement and feel Cade wrap his arms around my waist. I turn into him and he leans down to give me a soft peck on lips before grabbing my hand to lead me into the house. I turn back because I feel something or someone watching me and I see the girls and I wave to them before going inside.

 **Sorry it's such a short chapter but I'm back or at least trying to be and trying to defeat my writer's block.**


	7. Swimming Lessons

The week had passed by seemingly quickly and I caught glimpses of the girl, but my new workout regimen has kept me busy. Finally Friday was here and I was ready to relax and cuddle up with Cade. We were still stuck in our honeymoon stage, and it helped that I had my dad for an extra week around the house. I relaxed in my bath when I heard the bell ring and didn't fight the urge to roll my eyes. The first time I had time to myself and someone has to intrude. Cade went with my parents to pick up supplies to make repairs on the house before my dad left, so I'm the only one who can answer. I put on a robe and rush down the stairs to open the door and I'm met with all four girls.

"Hey guys," I say and wave them in.

"Hey Em, sorry to interrupt," Aria says as they pile into my foyer.

"It's okay, I was just sitting down anyway, come on up, no one's home," I say and lead them back to my room. "So what's up?" I ask them as I put on decent clothes.

"We just wanted to catch up, haven't seen you in a while," Hanna answers.

"Sorry, I just started going to the studio more over in Philadelphia and New York to prepare for my competition in a month," I say.

"Where's the competition?" Spencer asks.

"In San Diego," I say. "So what have you guys been up to?" I ask.

"Just relaxing and hanging out before I leave for Cape May," Alison says and I frown slightly. "My family has a house up there, you should come with the girls when they come to visit," she says and I nod.

"I'll see," I say and clasp my bra before turning around to face them while reaching for my shirt on the bed.

"So where's the Samoan God?" Hanna asks and I see Spencer hit her in the ribs. "Ow!"

"He's out with my parents picking up supplies to make repairs on the house," I answer before plopping down on the bed.

"Oh my God! You totally slept with him!" Hanna says.

"What?" I yell and immediately sit up.

"I know that glow, it's the, I had some great sex and I'm possibly in love glow," she says confidently.

"Well if you must know, yes you're right Hanna, we're back together, and yes we had sex, and yes it was amazing," I relent, knowing the truth would eventually come out. Damn Hanna and her amazing reading skills.

"You guys owe me $20 bucks each," she says with her hands out in both directions of the girls.

"What? You bet on me?" I ask incredulously.

"Well of course, I knew before the week was up, you'd give into that God like body," she smiles sneakily.

"Nice to know what kind of friends I have," I fake pout before she squeezes on my cheek and we both laugh. It feels like I've known her my whole life, we just click.

"So you guys are together again?" Aria asks and I nod.

"Yeah, we decided to give it another try, even though its long distance. I don't know something changed the night we got back from the restaurant. It was like I realized that's he's always been here through all my ups and downs and I couldn't imagine anyone else. And well you know what happens next," I say and Hanna holds out my hand for a high five.

"OMG! Is he big?" Hanna asks bluntly and I turn a deep shade of red.

"Hanna!" Spencer

"What?" she asks innocently, but I still refuse to answer the question.

"We were thinking of going swimming at the school, want to tag along?" Alison asks.

"Are you sure its open to us?" I ask hesitantly.

"No, we're going later on tonight when no one's there," she smirks deviously.

"Okay, sounds like fun," I can't resist the danger of the situation.

"Alright, we're going to get out of here, but we'll meet at Hanna's around 9," she says and I nod before seeing them out. Cade and my parents return a short while after, with my mom heading for the kitchen to start making dinner and the other two opening their "toys".

"Hey mom, I'm going over to Hanna's later on," I say to her and she smiles in approval.

"Dinner's ready!" my mom calls me down an hour and a half later. We say grace and dig into the delicious food she prepared.

"Save some room for dessert," she tells me and I nod and hope that she made peach cobbler. I smell it before I set she sets my favorite on the table and I'm the first to dig in, taking an obnoxiously large piece.

"I made an extra two pies, one for you to bring to Hanna's mom and one for later since its your favorite," she explains and I'm too busy eating to answer back, knowing my nodding will do all the talking. Soon, its 8:45 and I'm packing my bathing suit and an extra pair of clothes before jetting off to Hanna's.

"You finally made it," Hanna says.

"What? You said be here by 9 and its 8:59," I argue.

"I'm just joking, but you would get here by the exact time," she smiles before the other girls join her. We pile into my truck before I start making my way towards the school. Most of them were caught up in their own conversations while Alison struck up one with me.

"So are you going to enroll at Rosewood High?" she asks.

"Probably not, I want to be homeschooled now that Ballet is taking up most of my life and I have to travel for competitions, and if I get into Alexei's Dance Company, then I really will be eating, breathing and sleeping Ballet," I explain.

"That's a shame, I would've loved to compete with you for Queen B," she winks at me.

"Sorry, those things don't concern me," I say and she frowns for further clarification.

"I'm too focused on my future to worry about popularity contests. Who are those people in high school? Nobodies, they're not doing anything to better my career as a ballerina. I probably won't see them in the future at least not enough for them to make an impact on my life, and if by some chance I do and they hold an authority position over me, do I really want to be remembered as the girl who bullied them or ruled over them? Absolutely not. People these days believe in an eye for an eye, they seek vengeance and I rather not have anything from my high school haunt me as an adult," I ramble on while looking out at the road. Three minutes later and we pull up to the school and I guess she never had a response to that. We climb out and I walk to the door to see it's locked.

"Think fast!" Alison throws me the keys and I unlock it.

"How'd you get those?" I ask not really wanting an answer.

"I have my ways," and that smirk reappears on her face for the second time in one day. We make it inside the school to see its completely dark, save for a few lights and they direct me towards the pool. Hanna takes off her clothes and dives in with Spencer close behind. I strip and redress in my two piece bathing suit.

"Damn Em, I didn't know you were packing like that," Hanna smiles at me and I blush.

"Well you know, dancers do have the best bodies," I wink before executing a perfect dive.

"What aren't you good at?" Hanna asks.

"Hmm, I don't know," I ask and pretend to ponder seriously before we both start chuckling.

"Race me!" Spencer says and we back against the wall before Alison yells go and I take off down the lane. The adrenaline is now pumping through me as the water glides past me. Apart from dancing, swimming is my home. I feel safe and powerful in the water as it propels me forward. I touch Alison's leg that is partially in the water to signal I'm done and I see that Spencer is in the middle of the pool.

"Emily won!" Alison yells and Spencer looks up in disbelief.

"But, what the hell are you on Fields?" she asks before giving me a high five.

"Oh you know the usual," I say sarcastically.

"Why don't you try out for swimming? You'd totally be our new captain, the team is alright, but majority were seniors," she says.

"Sorry, but dancing is my numero uno," I say before the strong force of nature named Hanna wrapped her arms around me.

"You were amazing Em," she says proudly.

"Good job Em, no one beats Spencer," Aria says before pulling the other girls away to talk and I look up to Alison with her feet still in the water.

"Why don't you join me Queen B," I say but her inner thoughts prevent her from hearing me. "Alison!" I say a little louder and it catches her attention.

"What?" she asks.

"Come in," I say and she shakes her head. "Why not?"

"I don't know how to swim," she answers honestly.

"Come here, I'll teach you," I say and grab her thighs to bring her down into the water gently. "Lie on your stomach, and my hands will support you," I say and soon enough she's floating. "There you go, now I'm going to remove my hands," I say.

"No!" she says nervously.

"Hey, you've got this, do you trust me?" I ask and she nods and she didn't even realize that my hands had been off for a while. "Guess what,"

"What?" she asks.

"You're floating on your own," I say and she smiles brightly. "Now start fluttering your feet and move own arm forward and scoop the water backwards and do the same with the next one. "There you go! See it's not so bad," I smile at her.

"Thank you Em, for teaching me," she says and I nod, encouraging her to swim further on her own.


End file.
